WBC-11.2

11.2...That's the title today, you know like those people that have "26.2 " stickers on their car for marathons. According to my team, my white count today was 11.2, which is great in that I'm not neutropenic and the neupogen seems to be boosting my count.  Incidentally, if you try to enter neupogen on the iPad the auto correct puts in "new pigeon".   Anyway, I could get bombed by a new pigeon and be okay.  Bring it on, nasty bird.

I got my labs drawn today on the 18th floor and suspect we were probably above quite a few pigeons. That particular pavilion of the Northwestern complex has at least 21 floors. The sister complex appears to have at least as many floors and there's a separate Prentice Women's Hospital next to the Children's Hospital. There's a building here bigger than both Tuality and Newberg Hospital combined, and it is apparently entirely devoted to medical research. There are so many ambulances on the streets around here that Craig is suffering from PTSD at the sound of them.  So far none of them are Metro West rigs.

Craig and I met at Naval Medical Center San Diego and it is a large complex that includes a multitude of specialties, but even it pales in comparison to Northwestern.  Since our training days in San Diego we've always either been stationed at, or subsequently in civilian life, associated with community hospitals.  As with all things in life, there are pros and cons, particularly for the Emergency Room Department.  In a community hospital you tend to have limited resources and  there are no sepsis teams,  airway teams,  etc.  Craig always says, "There's a sense of camaraderie  and you really get to know the people you work with and they get to know you".  They depend on one another.  Different hospitals, each providing a vital service to the community and intersecting our lives in ways we never imagined.


So today I'm thankful for large medical institutions where there are people like Dr. Burt and his team, who dedicate their lives to research and pioneering new therapies.  I'm  also thankful for a small community hospital in Newberg that has made me a part of their family.  I am moved and forever grateful for the affection and support shown to us by the people who work with Craig to include; his partners, all the nurses and Emergency Department staff,  as well as the hospital administration.  At this rate my kids will want me to have another stem cell transplant next year!


~Veronica